CHOCOLATE CARAMEL CAKE: INDULGENCE, butter-free batter,

Another scrumptious cake for political volunteers or a family gathering...

Nothing healthy about this: just rich moist chocolate cake, laced with caramel  
 flavours, covered with creamy caramel icing & bits of caramel chocolate bars
'True and luscious hit! People have helped themselves to repeated slices.' Taster

Everyone loves chocolate cake, especially dark rich yummy chocolate cakes like Grandma used to make. 

Every baker has a favourite chocolate cake recipe (or two) that can - with a few simple twists - be turned into a completely different taste sensation.

This Chocolate Caramel Cake is one of those recipes.

Based on the mother-of-the-florist-friend of tv chef Ina Garten, it is -- in its original iteration -- a beautiful tender-crumbed chocolate cake that serves many.  

But with 67's addition of natural caramel flavour, a rich decadent not-too-sweet caramel icing, and some chopped up currently-on-offer chocolate caramel bars*, it's a taste sensation.

OK, the cake does seem to have a shocking amount of sugar but the rest of the ingredients more than outweighs them.   Sugar also seems to help the cake retain its moist, tender texture for at least a week (if you're lucky!) and to taste better as time goes by.  

The original recipe is posted under Beatty's Chocolate Cake and was posted not long after the Blog started.  It was classed as a Cake for Busy Grannies because it's so easy to put together.  Some 7 years on, the simplicity of preparation is still a vote-winner.

Chocolate Caramel Cake does require light vegetable oil but only 120ml.  (Some Vegan bakers recommend melted vegan margarine but 67 has not tested this substitution.)

Cost: £4-5.00'ish

Portions: recommended 24

Ingred:
    150gm/5.3oz plain flour
      60gm/2.1oz wholemeal flour
    250gm/8.8oz white sugar 

      100gm/3.5oz soft brown sugar
      90gm/3.5oz cocoa powder(not drinking chocolate)
    2 tsp baking soda
    1 tsp baking powder
    1 tsp salt

    240 ml buttermilk, shaken
    120 ml light vegetable oil
    2 eggs at room temperature
    1 tsp good vanilla essence
    240 ml freshly brewed hot coffee (enhances chocolate flavour)

    

Icing:

75g/2.6oz very soft butter
3/4 cup icing sugar

3/4 tsp caramel flavouring (near the vanilla in the bakery section) 

1 tbsp milk

          1/2 x 120g/4.2oz chocolate caramel bar, chopped in small pieces

Method:

1. Pre-heat oven to 180C/160 fan/350F/gas 5 
2. Line a 11x7 in/28x17cm pan with greaseproof paper (or grease and flour two 20cm/8inch round pans)
3. Sift dry ingred into large bowl; mix with electric beaters on low or with a paddle attachment on a free-standing mixer to thoroughly blend dry ingredients
4. In a large jug, lightly whisk buttermilk, oil, eggs and vanilla
5. On low speed, slowly add wet ingred to dry
6. Add coffee and mix, again on low speed, until just combined; the mix will be quite wet; use a spatula to scrape bottom and sides of bowl to ensure all is mixed in
7. Pour batter into the pan
8. Bake 45-60 mins or until a toothpick comes out clean
9. Cool in pan 30 mins; then turn onto a cooling rack; remove paper and cool completely before icing
10. Remember portion control: this cake should produce at least 24 decent portions
11. Scatter 2-3 pieces of the chocolate caramel bits over each portion

Icing

75g/2.6oz very soft butter
3/4 cup icing sugar

1/2 tsp caramel flavouring (near the vanilla in the bakery section) 

1.5 tbsp milk          

1. Cut each square of chocolate caramel into 6 pieces, keep as separate as possible, set aside
2. In a a small deep bowl begin mixing very soft butter and icing sugar with a hand whisk or wooden spoon; don't use electric beaters until step 4 unless you enjoy having icing sugar all over the kitchen and yourself.
3. The icing sugar and butter will resist blending at first then soften into something more spreadable
4. Add caramel essence;  whizz with electric beaters
5. Add milk, beat slowly until icing is creamy and fluffy; it should plop softly from the spoon
6. Spread over cake, swirling with a palette knife
7. Scatter over chocolate caramel bits

 *large (120g/4.2oz) chocolate caramel bars £1 each

  at 24 bus depot newsagent, South End Green, Hampstead

Comments:

'Awesome!  This cake has been a huge office hit!  Moist throughout - with really dreamy, creamy icing.  People have helped themselves to repeated slices. A true and luscious hit!' Political agent  

'Subtle but noticeable hint of caramel in the cake; the icing and garnish turn that into full-blown caramel-y loveliness.' Retired writer

Tips:

• Want more icing?  Go for broke and make a bigger bowl -- instead of the ingredients listed, try 100gm butter; 1 cup icing sugar, 3/4 tsp caramel flavouring and 2 tbsp milk
• If needs must, replace wholemeal flour with plain white BUT soft brown sugar adds to the Caramel-y flavour 

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This recipe has been created by B  Lee/Bright Sun Enterprises and may not be reproduced, in any form, without the author's written permission.